Tuft-making device for automatic brushmaking machines



w. "r. WEST May 23, 1944.

TUF'I MAKING DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC BRUSH MAKING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 13, 1942 May 23, 1944.

w. 1-. WEST IUFT MAKING DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC BRUSH MAKING MACHINES I Filed Nov. 13, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 gwue wlio'u w m 271%)? Patented May 23, 1944 (UNITED STAT-IE PATENT" OFmE TUFT-MAKING DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC I ,BRUSI-HVIAKING MACHINES. 1

William T. West, Severna Park, Md., assignor to Fisher Brush Machinery Corporation, Baltif more, Md., a 'corporation of Maryland I Application November 13, 1942, Serial No. 465,492 1 Claim. (Cl. zoo-'7) Thi invention relates to a simple and effective mechanisrnfor gathering wisps of fibre, bristles, or other tuft-making material, from a magazine and delivering the same to the stapling mechanism of an automatic brush-making machine, to form-tufts in. brush blocks.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is. aside elevation, partly broken away, of the magazine for holding the fibres or bristles and ,of the picker disc and nozzle, showing the leveron the disc in position to, eject a wisp-into the nozzle; I

Figure 2 is a side view; of the lower part of the magazine andthe picker with the lever in ,position to permit the fibres or bristles to enter the slot in thedisc;

Figure 3 is a viewflooking from right to left in Figure 1, showing the magazine, partly broken away, and the picker disc in dotted lines, and showingalso the driving means for the picker disc;

Figure 4 is a side view of the picker disc, with its lever in the ejecting position;

Figure 5 is a section on the line 55 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a section on the line 'I--'I of Figure 1, and

Figure 8 is a side view of a modified form of picker, having two slots and two levers.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, A represents a vertical guide in which is mounted a slide a to which is secured a nozzle N, tapering from its upper to its lower end and having a notch I at its upper end to receive wisps of fibres or bristles from a picker disc P and also having a notch 2 at a right angle to the notch I into which the margin of the picker disc extends, as shown in Figure 3. The magazine M for holding the bristles, fibres, or other tuft-making material, 4 is arranged in inclined position with respect to the guide A and upon the shaft 5, between the lower end of the magazine and the nozzle, is secured the picker-disc P. The disc is oscillated through approximately a half revolution in time with the other mechanism of the brush-making machine by means of a rack 2|! which is engaged by a pinion 2| on the shaft 5.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the marginal portion of the disc extends into the lower end of the magazine and has a slot 6 in said portion which inclines slightly forward from its inner end to its outer end, with respect to the direction of motion indicated by the arrow in Figure 2, and. becomes filled with fibres or bristles as the notch portion the arrow. The fibres or bristles are arrangedhorizontally in the magazine .as shown in Figure 3, and-the plane of the picker disc is near to the center line of the bristles, as shown in said figure. Thus, while the notch is moving through the magazine in the direction of the arrow it picks up a wisp of the fibresor bristles. As the notch leaves the magazine its outer end is closed by a shoe S which fits against the periphery of the disc and closes the slot so that the wisp is carried around to the nozzle N, where it is ejected from the slot into the nozzle, as hereinafter'described The shoe S is arranged within a guide casing C and is pivotally connected at its upper end to the side walls of the casing by a pivot pin I. The case ing. is fastened at its upper end to the magazine and a fiat spring 8 extends along the outer margin of the casing, and is centrally secured to the casing by a screw 9, Pins I0 at opposite ends of the spring extend through the casing and bear upon the shoe so that the latter is pressed against the disc with light spring pressure.

A lever L (see Figures 5 and 6) is pivotally connected at one end to the disc by pivot pin I I which extends through a perforation in the disc. The lever comprises two thin blades I and I of the same form and dimensions, arranged on opposite sides of the disc, and these are connected together by a spacing stud I2 which extends through a perforation in the blade I and through an arcuate slot I3 in the disc and into engagement with the blad I' to which it is secured by a screw I4. The blades composing the lever lie close to the disc but are freely movable thereover.

One blade of the lever is normally held against the head of a screw l5 by a spring I6. The screw head is eccentric with respect to the stem of the screw as shown in Figure 6. The free end of the lever lies opposite the end of the wisp-gathering slot. By adjusting the screw head the end of the lever may be set so as to shorten the effective length of the slot and thus limit the size of the wisp that will be gathered. As the disc rotates in the direction of the arrow, Figure 2, the wisp gathered in the slot in the disc will be carried around to the nozzle, and when it arrives at this point the stud I2 on the lever will engage a stationary part I! and the free end of the lever will be given an outward thrust and will eject the wisp from the slot in the disc into the upper end of the nozzle. The stapling mechanism, not shown, will then operate to apply a staple to the wisp and it will be carried through the nozzle to form a tuft in a brush block. In the meantime moves through the magazine in the direction of the picker disc moves backward into the picking its position against the stop I5 as shown in Figure 2.

In Figure 8 of the drawings is shown a picker disc P having two diametrically opposite wisp notches 6 and 6 and two levers L and L mounted on pivot pinsl l and Il respectively, at diametrically opposite points on the disc. Each lever is the same as the levers shown in the previously described figures of the drawings. The free end of the lever L lies norm-ally against an adjustable stop l5 on the disc and opposite the inner end of the slot 6 and the free end of the lever L lies normally against an adjustable stop I5 and opposite the inner end of the slot 6'. The parts l2 IZ I3 I3 l6 [6 correspond to the parts I2, l3 and I6, respectively, of Figure 4 of the drawings. The shaft upon which the disc is mounted is indicated at 5, and I! represents the stationary cam for causing outward swinging movement of the levers to eject the wisps.

The picker shown in Figure 8 rotates continuously inthe counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in said figure, and gathers and ejects two wisps during each revolution, Thus, While a wisp is being gathered in the notch 6 a wisp in the notch 6 is being carried to and ejected into the nozzle (not shown) by the lever L by reason of the engagement of the stud l2 on the latter lever with the stationary cam I l which causes the free end of the lever to swing outwardly. After the stud [2 has passed the cam H, the spring 16 swings the lever inwardly against the stud I5 and as the disc continues its rotation the notch 6 picks up another wisp in the magazine while the lever L is moving to the discharge point and discharging a wisp from the notch 6 into the nozzle. Thus, two wisps are gathered and discharged by the picker during each revolution of the disc. This form of picker is especially adapted for brush-making machines geared for high speed. Because of the duplication of the means for picking and discharging the wisps in t e device shown in Figure 8, the speed of the disc need not be increased above that required of the oscillating disc in gathering and delivering wisps for a slower moving brush-making machine.

While bristles and fibres are referred to in the specification in describing the operation of the mechanism, the picker is adapted for use with any of the materials used for making brush tufts, such, for instance, as hair or wires of small diameter.

What I claim is:

In Wisp gathering mechanism for automatic brush machines, the combination with a magazine forcontaining fibres, bristles or other tuftmaking material of a nozzle spaced from the magazine, said nozzle having two slots arranged at an angle to one another, a picker disc rotatively mounted between the magazine and the nozzle and having its marginal portion extending into the magazine and into one of said slots, said disc having a slot in its marginal portion for gathering wisps in the magazine and carrying them through a partial revolution to the nozzle, a lever carried by the disc and means for causing said lever to eject the wisps into the nozzle, said lever comprising blades pivotally mounted on the disc, on opposite sides thereof and connected to move as a unit, a spring normally holding the free end of said lever adjacent the inherent! of the slot in said disc, and means for'causing said lever to swing outwardy and eject eachwisp from the slot in the disc into the nozzle when the slot in the disc reaches the slot in the nozzle.

WILLIAM T. WEST. 

